Decorating Dilemma:
I want to install hardwood floors throughout my house. However, the living room has a 10-foot ceiling and beautiful wood paneling on the walls, typical of many homes built in the ’70s and early ’80s (it was called a great room at the time). Should the wood floor be lighter, darker or an exact match with the paneling in the living room? I plan to use area rugs to keep the room from looking like a cave. Your guidance is appreciated!
Jane Jones
Dallas, Texas
Style Studio Solution:
Jane,
What a fun project. You’re going to love having those hardwood floors!!
We don’t think your woods need to match exactly, but they should be in the same hue. For example, if your walls are a neutral brown, it’s fine to go with a flooring that’s lighter or darker than that same brown, but avoid a flooring choice that is redder or greener. See the graphic we’ve attached here as an example of three different brown hues going from light to dark. Try to stay within one hue, but just go lighter or darker.
It would be a good idea for you to get a few boards of your color options and lay them up against the walls and live with them for a few days, looking at them at different times of the day, as the light will change as the sun moves through the sky.
Good luck!
Style Studio Team
